Freya Mathews is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

environmental philosopher whose main work has been in the areas of ecological metaphysics and

panpsychism In philosophy of mind, panpsychism () is the view that the mind or a mind-like aspect is a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of reality. It is also described as a theory that "the mind is a fundamental feature of the world which exists throug ...

. Her current special interests are in ecological civilization; indigenous (Australian and Chinese) perspectives on "

sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

" and how these perspectives may be adapted to the context of contemporary global society; panpsychism and critique of the metaphysics of modernity; and wildlife ethics and rewilding in the context of the

Anthropocene ''Anthropocene'' is a term that has been used to refer to the period of time during which human impact on the environment, humanity has become a planetary force of change. It appears in scientific and social discourse, especially with respect to ...

. Mathews has been teaching in Australian universities since 1979. She currently holds the post of Adjunct Professor of Environmental Philosophy at

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...

. Mathews is the author of several books and over seventy articles on ecological philosophy,

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

epistemology Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that examines the nature, origin, and limits of knowledge. Also called "the theory of knowledge", it explores different types of knowledge, such as propositional knowledge about facts, practical knowle ...

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

, and

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

. In addition to her research activities she manages a private biodiversity reserve in northern Victoria, Australia. She is a fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities.

Works

Mathews's philosophy features a holistic approach to

environmental ethics In environmental philosophy, environmental ethics is an established field of practical philosophy "which reconstructs the essential types of argumentation that can be made for protecting natural entities and the sustainable use of natural resourc ...

with a metaphysical basis. Particularly, she draws from

Baruch Spinoza Baruch (de) Spinoza (24 November 163221 February 1677), also known under his Latinized pen name Benedictus de Spinoza, was a philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, who was born in the Dutch Republic. A forerunner of the Age of Enlightenmen ...

's notion of "ethic of interconnectedness", which treats the features of the natural world as attributes of the same underlying substance. Her advocacy of ontopoetics, which she described as meaningful communicative exchanges between self and the world, is an aspect to this philosophical view. She also promotes a kind of ecocentrism to address and sustain inconvenient, and time-consuming conservation practice.

Selected publications

* ''The Ecological Self'', Routledge, London, 1991. Reissued 1993; paperback 1994 * ''For Love of Matter: A Contemporary Panpsychism'', SUNY Press, Albany, 2003 * ''Journey to the Source of the Merri'', Ginninderra Press, Canberra, 2003 * ''Reinhabiting Reality: Towards a Recovery of Culture'', SUNY Press, Albany, 2005 * ''Ardea: a Philosophical Novella,'' Punctum Books, New York, 2016 * ''Without Animals Life is not Worth Living,'' Ginninderra Press, Adelaide, 2016

References

;External links
Freya Mathews' homepage
* Kate Rigby (2006)
"Minding (about) Matter: On the Eros and Anguish of Earthly Encounter."
A review essay engaging with Freya Mathews' two recent titles: ''For Love of Matter: A Contemporary Panpsychism'' and ''Reinhabiting Reality: Towards a Recovery of Culture'' in ''Australian Humanities Review'', Volume 28.
Book Review of ''Reinhabiting Reality''
''Trumpeter, Vol 24, No 3 (2008)''
Book review of ''For Love of Matter''
* Soren Brier,
Trust in the Order of Things
, review of ''The Ecological Self'', ''Systems Practice'', 9,4, 1996 pp 377–385 * Bonnett, M 2002,
Education for sustainability as a frame of mind
''Environmental Education Research'', vol 8, no. 1, pp. 9–20

on the Panexperientialim blog * A post on th

* Entry on Freya Mathews in Julie Newman (ed),
Green Ethics and Philosophy: an A – Z Guide
', Sage, 2011 ;Books *B. Baxter, ''Ecologism: An Introduction'' (Georgetown University Press, 2000), pp 16–33, 58-79. *E. de Jonge, ''Spinoza and Deep Ecology: Challenging Traditional Approaches to Environmentalism'' (Routledge, 2016), Ch. 3. *J. Franklin, ''Corrupting the Youth: A History of Philosophy in Australia'' (Macleay Press, 2003), ch. 13. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mathews, Freya Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Australian women philosophers 21st-century Australian philosophers Australian environmentalists Australian women environmentalists 20th-century Australian philosophers 20th-century Australian women Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities Environmental philosophers

Works

Selected publications

See also

References

Further reading